UK basketball notes: 'Freshman wall' a myth at Kentucky

Kentucky freshmen apparently are immune to the kind of sensory overload that long ago led to the perception that first-year players become worn down mentally and physically by February. "There's no chance to hit a freshman wall here," forward Willie Cauley-Stein says.

Kentucky Wildcats guard Archie Goodwin (10) and Kentucky Wildcats guard Ryan Harrow (12) laughed during an official's timeout late in the game as the University of Kentucky played Auburn University in the Auburn Arena in Auburn, Al., Saturday, January 19, 2013. This is second half action. The officials had called a timeout to review the previous play when Kentucky Wildcats forward Alex Poythress (22) was fouled hard. UK won 75-53. Photo by Charles Bertram | Staff
Herald-Leader

Kentucky forward Willie Cauley-Stein (15) scored over South Carolina's Mindaugas Kacinas on Tuesday as the Cats won 77-55. Cauley-Stein, who missed four games after having a minor procedure on his left knee, scored 13 points with six rebounds. "There's no chance to hit a freshman wall here," Cauley-Stein said Friday.
Herald-Leader

When asked about freshmen hitting a metaphorical wall this time of the season, Willie Cauley-Stein grunted.

"Huh," he said. "There's no — how can I say this? — there's no chance to hit a freshman wall here."

Kentucky freshmen apparently are immune to the kind of sensory overload that long ago led to the perception that first-year players become worn down mentally and physically by February. There's too much at stake, plus Coach John Calipari is too much of a hard-charger. Fatigue is a luxury at UK.

When the teams played at Auburn on Jan. 19, the Tigers made none of their 15 three-point shots. That made Auburn the first UK opponent since 2001 not to make at least one three-point shot (Mississippi State shot zero-for-19 against the Cats on Feb. 10, 2001).

Julius Mays credited good defense, but that's not how Barbee saw it.

Noting the "ton of open shots" missed, the Auburn coach said, "Hopefully we'll shoot it a lot better."

Shot blocker Nerlens Noel and Cauley-Stein make scoring around the basket difficult for UK opponents.

"At the end of the day, you have to make jump shots," Barbee said, "because that's what they're going to give you. Like in the first game, if you don't make them, you don't win."

Kentucky won 75-53.

WCS: unwitting energy

Cauley-Stein did not embrace the notion that he consciously sought to provide energy off the bench.

"Not really," he said of his 13-point, six-rebound performance against South Carolina on Tuesday. "I wasn't really thinking about it. But if you went back and watched film, then it showed. When you're out there, you don't really think about it."

Parity?

Auburn might be tied with Tennessee for 10th place in the SEC. Auburn might have the league's second-worst Ratings Percentage Index, according to CBSSports.com: No. 203. Mississippi Sate has the lowest RPI at No. 232.

Still, Calipari sounded wary. He noted how Arkansas lost at South Carolina by 21 points 10 days before beating first-place Florida by a double-digit margin.

"We're all the same," Calipari said of SEC teams.

Etc.

Apparently, Elston Turner's 40-point performance at UK in January made for a lasting memory. Of Auburn's leading scorer, Frankie Sullivan, Calipari said, "Sullivan could score 40. (pause) I shouldn't have said that." Auburn beat Alabama 49-37 on Wednesday despite Sullivan making only one of 13 shots. . . . Dave Baker and Kara Lawson will call the game for the SEC network.